word, that the queen never loved me. She was a wicked woman."
"Ah!" said the domino.
"Wilful, violent, and jealous."
"If she was jealous, she loved you," interrupted the mask. "Seek for
proofs which have at least a shadow of probability; do not accuse a
heart which was wholly yours."
"So far from loving me," said the king, excitedly, "the very night of
my marriage she dared tell me to my face that she had married me only
for my crown."
"That is not true," said the gipsy, raising her hand.
"I swear it," replied Charming.
"You lie!" cried the stranger. And, lo! a box on the ear blinded the
prince; the blow was repeated, and the stranger fled.
The king stepped back furious, and sought the hilt of his sword; but
men do not go to balls armed as for war; for his sole weapon he found
a knot of ribbons. He ran after his enemy, but which way had she fled?
Charming lost himself twenty times in the labyrinth; he met none but
peaceful dominos walking in couples and scarcely glancing at him as he
passed. Breathless, distracted, and desperate, he returned to the
ball-room, where he doubted not that the stranger had taken refuge;
but how was he to find her?
A brilliant idea crossed the prince's mind; he would order all to
unmask, and would doubtless see the gipsy, confounded by the king's
presence and betrayed by her own agitation. He instantly leaped on a
chair, and exclaimed in a loud voice that caused every one to start:
"Ladies and gentlemen, day is approaching and pleasure is languishing;
let us revive mirth by a new caprice. Off with the masks! I set the
example; let all who love me follow it."
He threw off his domino, raised his mask, and appeared in the richest
and most elegant Spanish costume ever worn by prince. There was a
general outcry; all eyes were at first turned toward the king, then
toward the black domino with pink rosettes, who retreated as fast as
possible with a modesty that was not affected. All unmasked. The
ladies gathered round the king, who, it was remarked, had the most
violent fancy for the gipsy costume. Young or old, all the gipsies
received his homage; he took them by the hand and gazed at them with
an air which made all the other masks ready to burst with envy, then
made a sign to the orchestra; the dance recommenced, and the prince
disappeared.
He hastened again to the elm-walk in search of the traitress who had
insulted him, doubtless led by vengeance. His blood boiled in his
veins; he wandered at random, suddenly stopping short, looking,
listening, and spying in all directions. At the faintest gleam of
light through the foliage he sprang forward like a madman, laughing
and weeping at the same time as though distracted.
At the turn of an alley he met Rachimburg advancing toward him
trembling, with an air of terror.
"Sire," murmured he, in a mysterious voice, "has Your Majesty seen
it?"
"What?" asked the king.
"The specter; it passed close by me. I am a lost man; I shall die
to-morrow."
"What specter?" said Charming. "What fool's tale are you telling me?"
"A specter--a domino with flashing eyes, that threw me on my knees and
boxed my ears twice."
"It is she!" cried the king; "it is she! Why did you let her go?"
"Your Majesty, I had not my pike; but if ever I see her again I will
knock her down."
"Do no such thing!" returned the king. "If ever she returns, do not
frighten her; follow her and discover her retreat. But where is she?
Which way did she go? Lead me; if I find her your fortune is made."
"Sire," said the honest porter, looking at the moon, "if the specter
is anywhere, it must be up yonder; I saw it, as plainly as I see Your
Majesty, dissolving in mist. But before taking flight it gave me a
message for Your Majesty."
"What? Speak quickly!"
"Sire, its words were terrible; I shall never dare repeat them to Your
Majesty."
"Speak, I order you."
"Sire, the specter said, in a sepulchral voice, 'Tell the king that if
he marries again he is a dead man. The loved one will return.'"
"Here," said the prince, whose eyes shone with a strange luster, "take
this purse. Henceforth I attach you to my person; I appoint you my
first attendant, counting on your devotion and prudence. Let this
affair remain a secret between us."
"That makes two," murmured Rachimburg, as he departed with a firm
tread, like a man who neither suffers himself to be cast down by fear
or dazzled by good fortune. He was a strong-minded man.
The next morning the court gazette contained the following lines, in
the form of a letter without signature, in the unofficial part of the
paper:
"A rumor has been spread that the king is thinking of marrying again.
The king knows what he owes to his people, and is always ready to
sacrifice himself for the happiness of his subjects. But the people of
Wild Oats have too much delicacy not to respect a recent affliction.
The king's whole thoughts are fixed on his beloved wife; he hopes the
consolation from time that is at present refused him."
This note threw the court and town in agitation. The young girls
thought the scruples of the prince exaggerated; more than one mother
shrugged her shoulders, and said that the king had vulgar prejudices
worthy only of the common people; but at night there was strife in
every well-ordered household. There was not a wife of any pretensions
to aristocratic birth that did not quarrel with her unworthy spouse
and force him to admit that there was but one heart capable of love,
and but one faithful husband in the whole kingdom, namely, Prince
Charming.
VII
TWO CONSULTATIONS
After so much excitement, the king was seized with a cruel fit of
tedium. To divert himself, he attempted every kind of pleasure; he
hunted, he presided over his council, he went to the play and the
opera, he received all the state corporations with their wives, he
read a Carthaginian novel, and reviewed the troops half a score of
times; but all in vain: an inexorable memory, an ever-present image
left him no rest or peace. The gipsy pursued him even in his dreams;
he saw her, he talked to her, and she listened to him; but, by some
unaccountable fatality, as soon as she raised her mask, Pazza's pale,
sad face always appeared.
The doctor was the only confidant to whom Charming could avow his
remorse, but at his word Wieduwillst burst into laughter.
"The effect of habit, sire," he said. "Gain time, multiply
impressions, and all will be effaced."
To procure the prince excitement and to drive away sorrow by a bold
diversion, the doctor supped every evening alone with His Majesty, and
poured out intoxication and forgetfulness with a liberal hand.
Wieduwillst did not spare himself, but wine had little effect on his
strong brain; he would have defied Bacchus and Silenus together with
Charming. While the prince, by turn noisy and silent, plunged into the
extremes of joy and sadness, always restless and never happy,
Wieduwillst, calm and smiling, directed his thoughts, and through pure
goodness of soul took upon himself all the fatigue and care of the
government.
Three decrees had already placed in his hands the police, the courts,
and the finances. The doctor well understood all the advantages of
centralization. The way in which he administered the taxes relieved
him from all personal anxiety for the future. The courts punished
those who clamored too loudly; the police silenced those who whispered
too much. Nevertheless, in spite of the ability of these political
schemes, the people, always ungrateful, did not appreciate their
happiness. The inhabitants of Wild Oats delight in complaining; the
pleasure was spoiled for them.
King Bizarre's name was in all hearts and every one regretted the good
old times when they shouted over the roof-tops that they were gagged.
The doctor was ambitious; he was born for a prime minister. Every
morning some new ordinance made the people feel that the king was
nothing and the minister everything. Charming was the only one that
did not perceive his nothingness. Shut up in his palace, and dying of
ennui, his sole companion was a page placed near him by the prime
minister on Rachimburg's recommendation. Frolicsome, chattering, and
indiscreet, a good musician and capital card-player, Tonto, for that
was the page's name, amused the king by his pranks; he pleased the
prime minister no less, but by other virtues. Devoted to his
benefactor, the good-natured page innocently repeated to him the most
trifling words of the prince--an easy task, moreover, as the king was
constantly dreaming and never spoke.
It is a fine thing to have the advantages of power; but appetite comes
by eating even with ministers. The ambitious doctor began to desire
both the honors and luster of royalty. Charming's best friend did not
once think of dethroning him; nations sometimes have foolish
prejudices and cling to old habits, but nothing was easier than to
frighten a sick prince and send him afar off in search of a cure that
would be long coming, while in his absence the doctor would reign as
his proxy.
Charming was young; he still clung to life, and, moreover, how could
he resist the tender solicitude of the good doctor? The three most
renowned physicians of the faculty met one evening in consultation at
the palace--long Tristram, fat Jocundus, and little Guilleret, three
celebrated men--three geniuses who had made their fortune, each with
one idea, which had been the reason why they had never had any more.
After the king had been cross-questioned, looked at, handled,
auscultated, and turned round again and again, Tristram spoke first,
in a rude voice.
"Sire," said he, "you must be bled like a peasant, and live without
any exertion whatever. Your disease is a deficiency of blood, a
constitutional atony. Nothing but a journey to the Clear Waters can
cure you. Go quickly, or you are a dead man. You have my opinion."
"Sire," said fat Jocundus, "I fully share the admirable opinion of my
dear professional brother. You are suffering from superabundant
vitality. Your disease is a constitutional plethora. Go, drink the
Clear Waters, and you will be a well man again. You have my opinion."
"Sire," said little Guilleret, "the diagnostic of my masters fills me
with admiration. I bow before their learning. Like them, I believe
that you are suffering from disorder of the sympathetic nerves. Your
disease is a constitutional nervousness. Drink the Clear Waters. Go
quickly, or you are a dead man. You have my opinion."
A unanimous opinion was drawn up and immediately carried to the court
gazette by Tonto; and the three doctors rose, bowed to the minister
and the king, shook hands with one another, and went down-stairs
quarreling or laughing, I know not which; the chronicle is almost
illegible, owing to a large blot in this place.
After the three physicians had gone, Wieduwillst read the opinion,
reflected deeply, and looked at the king. Charming, who had supped a
little better this evening even than usual, had not once listened to
the doctors, but sat gazing around him with bloodshot eyes.
[Illustration: THE MOST RENOWNED PHYSICIANS OF THE FACULTY MET ONE
EVENING IN CONSULTATION AT THE PALACE]
"Sire," said he, "it is the unanimous opinion of these gentlemen that,
if you wish to be cured, you must go to the Clear Waters and
abandon the affairs of state. Such a resolution appears to me unworthy
of Your Royal Majesty. A great prince should sacrifice himself for his
people, and--"
"Enough," said the king. "Spare me this worn-out moralizing and come
to the conclusion. You wish me to go, my good friend; you are dying
for me to do so, for my own interest, of course. Draw up a decree
placing the regency in your hands, and I will sign it."
"Sire, the decree is here, in your portfolio; a good minister always
has papers drawn up to suit whatever circumstances may arise. He never
knows what may happen."
Charming took the pen, carelessly signed the decree without reading
it, and handed it to the minister, who approached to receive it with a
smile; then, seized with a new caprice, he drew back the paper and
read it.
"What!" said he, "no statement of reasons; nothing to assure my people
of the kindness I bear them! Doctor, you are too modest; to-morrow
this decree shall be in the gazette, with a statement from the hand of
your friend and master. Good night; these gentlemen have tired me."
The doctor went out with a light step, erect brow, and sparkling eye,
prouder and more insolent than ever. Charming sank again into his
reverie, thinking that, in spite of all, he was not the most unhappy
of princes, since Heaven had given him such a friend.
All at once the strangest little doctor that had ever been seen in a
castle entered the king's apartment unannounced. He wore a wig with
long curls, his snow-white beard fell on his breast, and his eyes were
so bright and youthful that it seemed as though they must have come
into the world sixty years after the rest of his body.
"Where are those knaves?" cried he, with a shrill voice, rapping on
the floor with his cane. "Where are those ignorant fellows, those
pedants, those ill-bred men that did not wait for me? Ah! so you are
the patient," said he to the stupefied king. "That is good. Put out
your tongue. Quick! I am in a hurry."
"Who are you?" asked the king.
"I am Doctor Truth, the greatest doctor in the world, as you will see,
in spite of my modesty. Ask Wieduwillst, my pupil, who sent for me
from the Land of Dreams. I cure everybody, even those who are not ill.
Put out your tongue; that's right. Where is the opinion? Very well.
Atony--_asinis!_ Plethora--_asini!_ Nervousness--_asinorum!_ Drink the
Clear Waters--_asininum!_ Do you know what is your disease? It is
vexation, and even worse."
"Do you see that?" said Charming, terrified.
"Yes, my son, it is written on your tongue. But I will cure you: it
shall be done by to-morrow noon."
"To-morrow!" said the king. "All my treasures--"
"Silence, my son. What portfolio is that?--the minister's? Good. Sign
these three papers for me."
"They are blank decrees," said the king. "What do you wish to do with
them?"
"They are my ordinances. Sign. Well done, my son; be obedient, and
to-morrow noon you shall be as gay as a lark. First ordinance: If you
would live at peace, appear at peace; I suppress six regiments. Second
ordinance: A penny in a peasant's pocket is worth twenty in the king's
treasury; I suppress one fourth of the taxes. Third ordinance: Liberty
is like the sunshine--it is the happiness and fortune of the poor; I
throw open the political prisons and demolish the debtors' prisons.
You are laughing, my son; it is a good sign when a patient laughs at
his doctor."
"Yes," said Charming, "I am laughing to think of Wieduwillst's face
to-morrow on reading these ordinances in the court gazette. Enough of
these follies, buffoon doctor; give me back the papers and put an end
to this farce."
"What is this?" said the little man, taking up the decree of the
regency. "God forgive me! it is an abdication. What are you thinking
of, Prince Charming? What! the inheritance bequeathed to you by your
fathers, the people intrusted to you by God, your name, your honor,
will you throw all these at the feet of an adventurer? Will you let
yourself be dethroned and duped by a deceiver? Impossible! It does not
suit me. I oppose it. Do you hear?"
"What insolent fellow addresses his prince in this way?"
"Politeness is not in words. Charming, are you mad? Are you dreaming?
Are you wholly without heart?"
"This is too much!" cried the king. "Begone, wretch, or I will throw
you out of the window."
"Begone!" said the little doctor, in a shrill voice. "No, not till I
have destroyed this mad and stupid document. See, I tear your
abdication in pieces and trample it under-foot!"
Charming seized the madman and called his guards. No one answered. The
little man struggled with wonderful strength. With his foot he threw
the lamp on the ground; but the king, despite the darkness, kept fast
hold of the sorcerer, who felt his strength failing.
"Let me go!" murmured he; "for Heaven's sake let me go! You know not
what you are doing. You are breaking my arm."
His words and prayers were useless. Suddenly a shower of blows, dealt
by a strong hand, fell on the king's ears. Charming let go his hold in
surprise, and turned to attack his invisible enemy. He found nothing
but empty space, and, staggering in the darkness, cried loudly for the
help that did not come. Such a thing could not have happened in a
minister's house; kings are always worse guarded.
VIII
THE END OF A DREAM
At last a door opened and Rachimburg entered, according to etiquette,
to undress the king. The faithful servant appeared greatly vexed to
find him without a light, groping along the wall.
"Where is that infernal doctor?" asked Charming, foaming with rage.
"It is more than an hour, sire, since His Excellency quitted the
palace."
"Who is talking of Wieduwillst?" cried the king. "Which way did the
villain go that just insulted me?"
Rachimburg looked at the prince with a contrite air, and raised his
eyes to heaven, sighing.
"A man went out of the door that leads to your rooms," said Charming.
"How did he enter, and where has he fled?"
"Sire," said Rachimburg, "I have neither quitted my post nor seen any
one."
"I tell you that a man was in this room a moment ago."
"Sire, Your Majesty is never mistaken; if a man was in this room he
is still here, unless he has flown through the window or Your Majesty
has been dreaming."
"Fool, do I look like a man who has been dreaming? Did I overturn this
lamp? did I tear these papers?"
"Sire, I am nothing but a worm of the earth; God forbid that I should
contradict my sovereign. Your majesty does not hire me to give him the
lie. But this year strange dreams are an epidemic. No one knows what
he may do or suffer in his sleep. Only just now I was overtaken with
sleep in spite of myself, and if I were not sure that I was dreaming I
should declare that an invisible hand boxed my ears twice, at which I
awakened with a start."
"It was the specter!" said the king.
"Your Majesty is right," replied Rachimburg; "I am nothing but a
simpleton; it was the specter."
"And I did not know her!" resumed Charming. "Nevertheless, it was her
voice and air. What does this mean? Is it a new insult? Is it a
warning from heaven? Does some danger threaten me? No matter, I will
remain in my kingdom. My friend, not a word of all this: take this
purse and keep the secret."
"That makes the third," murmured the faithful Rachimburg, as he
undressed the king with a zeal and address which several times made
His Majesty smile.
So many emotions one after another banished sleep; it was daybreak
before the prince dozed, and broad daylight before he awoke. In the
first moment between sleeping and waking Charming fancied that he
heard a strange noise--bells ringing, cannon firing, and three or four
bands of music playing each a different air. He was not mistaken; it
was an infernal hubbub. The king rang. Rachimburg entered, carrying a
bouquet of flowers.
"Sire," said he, "will His Majesty permit the humblest of his servants
to be the first to express to him the universal joy? Your people are
intoxicated with love and gratitude. The taxes lessened, the prisons
opened, the army reduced! Sire, you are the greatest prince in the
world; never has earth seen a ruler like you. Show yourself at the
balcony; answer these cries of 'Hurrah for the king!' Smile on the
people that bless you."
Rachimburg could not finish; tears choked his voice. He attempted to
wipe his eyes, but in his excitement he took the gazette from his
pocket instead of a handkerchief, and began to kiss it like a madman.
Charming took the journal, and vainly attempted, while dressing, to
collect his ideas. By what chance had these insane ordinances found
their way into the official journal? Who had sent them? Why did not
Wieduwillst make his appearance? The prince wished to reflect,
consult, and question; but the people were under the windows, and
their majesties were too impatient to wait.
As soon as the king appeared in the balcony he was greeted with
shouts of enthusiasm, which, despite everything, thrilled his heart.
Men tossed their caps in the air, women waved their handkerchiefs,
mothers lifted up their children and made them stretch their innocent
hands to heaven, and repeat, "Hurrah for the king!" The guns of the
palace guards were decked with flowers, the drums beat, and the
officers' swords flashed in the sun. It was a scene of delirious joy.
Charming was infected by the general emotion; he wept without exactly
knowing why. At that instant the clock struck noon. The specter was
right--the prince was cured.
After the crowd it was the turn of the corporations, all of whom, the
ministers at the head, came to congratulate and thank the king for
having so well understood the wishes of his faithful counselors. A
single person was lacking, namely, Wieduwillst. None knew where he had
hidden his ignorance and spite. A mysterious note received by him that
morning had occasioned his flight, yet this note contained only the
words, _The king knows all!_ Who had written this fatal letter? Not
the prince; he alone, perhaps, in the palace, thought of the minister,
and wondered at not seeing him by his side.
All at once Tonto entered, pale and haggard. He ran to the king and
gave him a letter which an officer had brought at full gallop. The
governor of the province, General Bayonet, sent terrible news; the six
disbanded regiments had mutinied, headed by Wieduwillst. The rebels
had proclaimed the downfall of the king, whom they accused of
abominable crimes, especially of the murder of the queen. Numerous and
well commanded, they were approaching the city, which was defended
only by a few doubtful and disaffected regiments. Bayonet entreated
the king to come instantly and take command; an hour later, and all
would be lost.
Hurried on by Tonto and Rachimburg, the king secretly quitted the
palace, followed by a few officers. A proclamation, placarded on all
the walls of the city and at every corner of the streets, declared
that there was no truth in the rumors spread by a few malicious
persons, and that the army had never been more devoted or faithful.
Upon this there was a universal panic; stocks fell 50 per cent. in
half an hour, and did not rise again till unofficial news arrived that
the king had been well received at head-quarters.
IX
HEROIC REMEDIES FOR GREAT EVILS
The news was false; the prince had been received with great coldness.
It was his own fault. Sad, despondent, and abstracted, Charming had
neither found a jest for the soldiers nor a word of trust for the
officers. He entered the general's tent and fell into a chair. Tonto
was little less disheartened.
"Sire," said Bayonet, "permit me to speak to you with the frankness of
a soldier and the freedom of an old friend. The army is murmuring and
hesitating; we must secure it, or all is lost. The enemy is in sight;
we must attack him. Five minutes sometimes decide the fate of empires;
it is so with us now. Do not wait till it is too late."
"Very well," said the king. "To horse! in an instant I will be with
you."
Left alone with Tonto and Rachimburg, the king exclaimed, in despair,
"My good friends, quit a master who can do no more for you. I shall
not dispute my wretched life with my enemies. Betrayed in friendship
and treacherously assassinated, I recognize in my misfortune the hand
of an avenging God. It is in punishment for my crime. I killed the
queen in my stupid vengeance; the hour has come to expiate my fault,
and I am ready."
"Sire," said Tonto, trying to smile, "shake off these sad thoughts. If
the queen were here she would tell you to defend yourself. Believe
me," he added, twisting his budding mustache, "I am acquainted with
women! Were they dead, they would still love to avenge themselves.
Besides, you did not kill the queen; and perhaps she is not so dead as
you imagine."
"What do you say?" exclaimed the king; "you are losing your reason."
"I say that there are women who die expressly to enrage their
husbands; why should there not be those that would rise from the dead
to enrage them still more? Leave the dead, and think of the living who
love you. You are a king; fight like a king, and, if necessary, fall
like a king."